portion

[pawr-shuhn, pohr-]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR portion ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a part of any whole, either separated from or integrated with it: I read a portion of the manuscript.

an amount of food served for one person; serving; helping: He took a large portion of spinach.

the part of a whole allotted to or belonging to a person or group; share.

the part of an estate that goes to an heir or a next of kin.

Literary. something that is allotted to a person by God or fate.

(especially formerly) the money, goods, or estate that a woman brings to her husband at marriage; dowry.

verb (used with object)

to divide into or distribute in portions or shares (often followed by out).

to furnish with a portion, as with an inheritance or a dowry: All of his children have been amply portioned.

to provide with a lot or fate: She was portioned with sorrow throughout her life.

Origin of portion

1250–1300; Middle English porcion < Old French < Latin portiōn- (stem of portiō) share, part, akin to pars part

Related formspor·tion·a·ble, adjectivepor·tion·less, adjectivere·por·tion, verb (used with object)un·por·tion·a·ble, adjectiveun·por·tioned, adjective

Can be confusedportion potion

Synonyms for portion

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR portion ON THESAURUS.COM

1. section, segment. See part. 2. ration. 3. allotment, quota, lot, dividend. 4. inheritance. 5. fortune, lot, destiny, doom. 7. allot, apportion. 8. endow.

Antonyms for portion

1. whole.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for portion

serving, lot, fragment, chunk, excerpt, allocation, part, fraction, piece, segment, section, quantity, shot, taste, morsel, measure, quantum, extract, moiety, apportionment

Examples from the Web for portion

Contemporary Examples of portion

Counting encores, NBC estimated that over 44 million people had watched some portion of the production by the end of the month.
The Cast of ‘Peter Pan Live!’ Knows You Hatewatched ‘The Sound of Music’
Kevin Fallon
December 2, 2014
In 2000, the Israeli government simply closed the portion of downtown Hebron under its control.
Inside Hebron, Israel’s Heart of Darkness
Michael Tomasky
November 21, 2014
But they can win back a portion of it, and in many states and congressional districts, a portion will be enough to change things.
The Real Reason Democrats Lost
Michael Tomasky
November 6, 2014
“They know how to take supplements, they know how to portion out their meals,” Smith said.
College Football Fattens Players Up and Then Abandons Them
Evin Demirel
October 4, 2014
A portion of ticket proceeds will go to the Foundation for Education of Young Women.
Tickets on Sale Now For WITW Texas
September 18, 2014

Historical Examples of portion

It is only right that I should employ a portion in His service.
Brave and Bold
Horatio Alger
The hymn, the portion of Scripture, and the prayer of Brother Buster.
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, No. 327
Various
It would be a solecism in language to say that any portion of these is not included in the whole.
United States Presidents' Inaugural Speeches
Various
The scenery in this portion of the river is highly exciting.
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, No. 327
Various
It has been our good luck to recover a portion of that history.
Other Tales and Sketches
Nathaniel Hawthorne

British Dictionary definitions for portion

portion

noun

a part of a whole; fraction

a part allotted or belonging to a person or group

an amount of food served to one person; helping

law

a share of property, esp one coming to a child from the estate of his parents
the property given by a woman to her husband at marriage; dowry

a person's lot or destiny

verb (tr)

to divide up; share out

to give a share to (a person); assign or allocate

law to give a dowry or portion to (a person); endow

Derived Formsportionless, adjective

Word Origin for portion

C13: via Old French from Latin portiō portion, allocation; related to pars part

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for portion

early 14c., "allotted part, share," from Old French porcion "part, portion" (12c., Modern French portion) and directly from Latin portionem (nominative portio) "share, part," accusative of the noun in the phrase pro portione "according to the relation (of parts to each other)" (see proportion). From late 14c. in general sense of "section into which something is divided."

"to divide in portions," early 14c., from Old French porcioner "share out, divide in portions," from porcion (see portion (n.)). Related: Portioned; portioning.